Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The Tánaiste will know that on retirement, people can now look forward to 20 years of further life. That is five times what our parents could look forward to. It is one of the great success stories.

However, Covid exposed serious weaknesses in how we think about ageing and the supports we put in place. Recently there have been some appalling cases of vulnerable people not being adequately safeguarded. The number of cases of abuse being reported is about 12,000. Many believe the number is 20 times that in reality.

Will we be able to deliver the commission on care and support for older people that is referred to in the programme for Government this year, which will be ten years after the original national positive ageing programme? Will we see a national safeguarding authority developed because our current approach is piecemeal in nature? Can we look forward to the statutory home care scheme? These are really important pillars for the future of positive ageing.

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